RUTHFULLY YOURS

The first duty of any parent is – and must always be – keeping their children safe.

Whether from misadventure, bad influences, or just plain old childhood bumps and bruises, most parents will be the first to admit they have their hands full.

For Jewish parents, however, there is another danger from which children must be protected.   For as most of us know and recognise, the scourge of Antisemitism afflicts Jews everywhere.  Sadly, that includes children.

This week, the Jewish Chronicle devoted its front page, as well as a double-page spread, to new and terribly sad research from The Henry Jackson Society.

HJS submitted 3,337 separate freedom of information requests to every high school in England to ask them about the volume of Antisemitism in their schools, as well as what – if anything – they were doing about it.

Of these, 1,315 schools – about 40 per cent – responded.

One question asked how many incidents involving pupil misconduct, bullying, harassment, or similar events in which the term “Antisemitism” was recorded had taken place over the past five years.

Alarmingly, the research revealed that instances of Antisemitic bullying at schools has almost tripled in the last five years.  We identified over 1,000 instances of such bullying.

The number of incidents reported for 2017 to 2022 totalled 1,077.  There were 60 incidents in 2017. This year, the figure almost trebled to 164. A further 581 incidents were logged but not linked to a specific year within the five-year period.

Taking into account how many schools did not respond and the fact that those that did are likely to be better at dealing with Antisemitism, the overall total is almost certainly far higher.

The incidents were not mere taunts or name calling.  Identified incidents included physical assaults, Nazi-inspired hatred, and a large volume of attacks directed at Jewish students over conflicts in the Middle East.

Perhaps just as troublingly, HJS found that just 47 schools have any kind of formal, written policy that might make staff more aware of the vicious forms Antisemitic bullying often takes, or requiring them to crack down on it.  The figure represents a derisory 3.4 per cent of schools that reported back.

Some of the schools in the survey shared details of individual cases. Of these, 58 per cent involved mockery and abuse of Jewish students through references to the Nazis and the Holocaust.

One school in London catalogued 29 incidents – the most of any school. The next 10 schools for the highest figures are in Hampshire, Essex, Bristol, West Sussex, Kent, Norfolk, Cornwall, Manchester, Berkshire and Surrey.  In all, 290 schools that responded to the survey recorded at least one Antisemitic incident.

The report attracted cross-party concern.

Robert Halfon MP, the Conservative chairman of the House of Commons Select Committee on Education, told the JC: “This is horrific. It’s hard to believe that in 2022, Jewish students are being subjected to antisemitism and abuse of this kind — and yet nothing seems to be being done about it.”

Bridget Phillipson MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Education, told the JC: “Antisemitism is an evil that must be tackled at every level and in every part of our society. This survey has left me shocked and appalled, and the number of incidents is rising quickly. It’s crucial that the government acts fast to ensure that anti-racism policies are accompanied with clear guidance for teachers and school leaders on recognising antisemitism at school — in the playground and the corridor, as well as in the classroom — and on dealing with it.”

Of course, for some parents of Jewish children, these finding won’t come as much of a surprise.  They represent the lived experience of raising children in our society.

What this survey means, however, is that this problem can no longer be brushed under the carpet.  The volume and extraordinary rise in school Antisemitism is on the record.

As a result, our team has already had encouraging conversations with senior Government officials about new policies to help stem the tide of this hate.

This form of work is critical to what we do at HJS.  Providing cold, hard facts that prove the existence of serious social problems – as well as providing solutions to fix it.

With Antisemitism rising like never before, this work could not be more important.  While Jewish children may be the ones affected in this instance, history has shown that what starts with the Jews never ends with the Jews, and it cannot be a healthy environment for any British child to be a witness or participant in such hatred.

Protecting our children must always be our first obligation. This report, we hope, will start to do just that.